Cheap City Hall (DVD) (Al Pacino, John Cusack) (Harold Becker) Price

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Customer Reviews of City Hall

Another Fine Pacino Vehicle
This film was made and was in theaters after "HEAT", but before "Devil's Advocate" and I must say that I actually liked it more than "Donnie Brasco". Pacino's John Pappas, actually made me wish that there were such a politician in the big apple after the passionate and vigorous speech given at the funeral in Harlem. The fact that at the end we find out that he was not as "kosher" as we were led to believe in the beginning, along with Danny Aiello's corrupt Anselmo, makes a person lose their faith in the movie's public officials as we do in real life after we've put so much faith and trust in them and we have the good script to thank for that. As for the rest of the cast, John Cusack has never been better as Kevin, the rightous deputy mayor along with Aiello and Fonda (too bad only a hint of affection between her and Cusack). Overall, the underrated "City Hall" is entertaining and suspenseful and a great "Pacino movie". Favorite line: Kevin: "The only thing new in this world is the history that you don't know."

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A Rich but Messy film
I liked City Hall quite a bit. I liked the furniture, I liked the art direction, I like the scene between Al Pacino and Danny Aiello at the break of a broadway a show. I liked the new york talk, the politics, the media maneuvering. So why the hell do I feel short changed by this movie. It works as an average thiller but that's not what its supposed to be about. I felt it was way to get things going (all the shooting , tha mafia etc..) to stay away from what is really interesting, the mayor, the backstage business of being mayor. Had the movie stayed with that it would have much more than an average thriller, but Al Pacino (the mayor) is a supporting character for a good two thirds of this movie, which is precisely the problem with it.

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Al Pacino, John Cusack, and Danny Aiello are great!
This is one of the best crime-drama movies during the late 1990s. It was filled with a great cast, a huge storyline, and many of the players involved gave great performances. Pacino was great; he should have been nominated for something. John Cusack was good too, as long as the viewer doesn't mind his Louuu-siana accent. He may come off as annoying if you can't stand this dialect. The way that Pacino's character interacted with Cusack's character was believable, dramatic, and slightly comical at times. Danny Aiello was superb as always. David Paymer was great in a supporting role. Bridget Fonda was good but not memorable.
There were times when this picture mentioned so many characters, probably too many. It may take a second viewing to remember, "which Zapatti was which?" After so many cross-references, one has to stop and think just to recap.
The ending didn't have a lot of sting. It was built up for so long in a good way and then was a little bit of a letdown. This was one of the few letdowns in the film
I think that since the movie wasn't billed as a huge, blockbuster big screen hit, it made some forget that this movie even existed. Pacino was great but the film's lack of "splash" in the theaters may have accounted for no nominations. It was semi-successful in the home market, and viewers are still learing that this title is out there. Made in 1996, it still stands up seven years later and should still be popular for many years from now.

So, make yourself some lemon pudding (you'll see) and rent this movie! Overall, a great picture.
4 ½ out of 5!!!